Deadline reports Legendary Entertainment CEO Thomas Tull is likely to make an announcement this week about the new partnership after departing the expired eight-year contract with Warner Bros.

The two top candidates are Comcast and NBCUniversal. According to Deadline, Comcast offered a tempting offer.

Other potential partners are rumored to be Lionsgate, Sony, and Fox.

San Diego Comic Con starts next week — where Legendary Pictures has a panel about its 2013 film lineup. This might be a good timing to make a partnership announcement.

Deadline.com — EXCLUSIVE: I’ve learned that Legendary Entertainment‘s Thomas Tull could announce his selection of a new film/television financial, distribution, marketing, and production partnership as early as this week after kicking tires all over Hollywood. And insiders tell me that Comcast is his choice barring some last-minute over-the-top offer from a rival media giant. “NBCUniversal has been the likely candidate from the beginning. — source

The Blizzard Publishing Panel will take place on Thursday at 2:15pm. The Floor Map showing the Blizzard Panel Hall 6BCF is here — look for the right-wing. (left-click the image once to zoom in)

Check out Blizzard’s San Diego Comic-Con schedule of events including panels, booth activities, and partner shenanigans. Copies of your favorite Blizzard books will be available for purchase at the booth—don’t forget to get yours signed by our featured guests at the times listed below. Look for us at booth #115, and be sure to get there early before everything is gone!

Funko Booth #5343Funko will also be selling a limited amount of the Shadow Illidan at their booth. If you haven’t seen this little guy yet, check out our blog post on our SDCC exclusives.

Sideshow #1929Come by to check out the painted Diablo statue in all its hellish glory, and the first look at Deathwing. Sideshow will also be showing off a previously unannounced statue that will be revealed in the Blizzard panel on Thursday.

Insight Editions #1134Each day Insight Editions will be holding a random drawing to give away a copy of The Art of Blizzard. They will also be showing off spreads from the upcoming Diablo: Book of Tyrael.

Thursday, July 18

11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – Art of Blizzard SigningWei Wang and Glenn Rane will be signing copies of “Art of Blizzard,” which you can buy at the booth. The Art of Blizzard details some of the most iconic artwork Blizzard has produced over the years in this full-color compilation.

2:15 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. – Blizzard Licensing Panel (Hall 6BCF)Chris Metzen (Blizzard Entertainment SVP Story and Franchise Development) and a team of esteemed guests reveal never-before-seen licensed products and plans for 2013/2014. Talk to the designers, writers and artists as we dig into toys, novels, comics, statues, and more. Panel and extended game Q&A session moderated by Kat Hunter (host of BlizzCon coverage on DIRECTV).

4:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. – UDON World of Warcraft Tribute Art Book SigningsCome by the Blizzard booth to meet artists Justin Bechtold, Ginny Higerd, and Arun Naina, whose art is featured in the World of Warcraft Tribute fanart book, curated by UDON.

2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. – Vol’jin: Shadows of the Horde SigningGive us your best troll impression when you pick up your copy of this newly released book and have it signed by author Mike Stackpole. Ya, mon!

The UDON World of Warcraft Tribute is scheduled to hit local and online bookstores on October 2013. However, if you are one of the thousands of San Diego Comic Con attendees you should check out the Blizzard Entertainment booth #115, or the UDON booth (#4529/4628).

UDON is selling the World of Warcraft Tribute (Hardcover) Limited Edition to attendees as a San Diego Comic Con Exclusive.

Check out the recent 9-page preview of the World of Warcraft Tribute book.

Check out the Floor Map where I marked the booths for all Blizzard licensed partners.

I will consider this one a rumor. San Diego Comic Con attendees who love polystone statues, and sixth scale figures might be interested to visit the Blizzard booth. My crystal ball whispered me there might be either a new product or new products from Sideshow Collectibles which have not been officially announced. This might or might not happen.

If this mystery product(s) is more than a rumor, it will be shown exclusively at the Blizzard Entertainment booth # 115 (Hall A). Heed the call, and visit the Blizzard booth.

Check out some of the new Blizzard Licensed merchandise announced a few days ago to be sold at the Blizzard booth, and the floor map where I marked all the Blizzard Licensed partners booths.

Disclaimer: The blurred image is merely a placeholder. (It’s the shape of a Star Wars Stormtrooper)

Thousands have entered – don’t miss your chance! Legendary is flying one lucky fan and a friend to join us July 16-21 at San Diego Comic-Con for the ultimate fan weekend. Enjoy a 5-night stay at the nearby Westin Gaslamp, free airfare, badges for each day, early access to the off-site experience, and much more! To enter, just Like our Facebook page and fill in a few blanks. Then, boost your chances of winning by sharing with friends!

If you’re headed to San Diego Comic-Con in July, don’t miss out on the exclusive merchandise we’ll have at the Blizzard booth! Whether you’re looking for an adorable StarCraft collectible or something special from World of Warcraft, we have you covered. Our San Diego Comic-Con exclusives are a limited run produced only for the convention, so make sure you’re ready to grab them early. We hope to see you there!

TRANSFORMING ZERGLING/BANELING PLUSH

This soft, huggable, and slightly murderous Zerg buddy is ready to keep you company at night! Transforms (at will) from Zergling to Baneling with the pull of a zipper. The exclusive San Diego Comic-Con color scheme is limited to 2,000 pieces.

MINI SYLVANAS

She’s cute. She’s deadly. Mini Sylvanas is the first in an exclusive new series of micro action figures. Limited to 2,000 pieces, so you’ll have to act quickly to snatch up a Banshee Queen of your very own.

SHADOW ILLIDAN BY FUNKO

With his big, adorable eyes and bold colors, Funko’s vinyl Shadow Illidan is sure to find a way to adorably corrupt your soul. Shadow Illidan is a Comic-Con exclusive variant of the upcoming Funko POP! Vinyl Blizzard line of toys and is limited to 750 pieces at the Blizzard booth and 250 at the Funko booth.

UDON WORLD OF WARCRAFT TRIBUTE ART BOOK [Hardcover Edition]

Blizzard will be the exclusive retailer for the Hardcover Edition of Udon’s new art book collecting fan-created tributes to the Warcraft universe. Only 300 copies of this Comic-Con exclusive will be available.

EPIC PURPLE LANYARD

Show off your impressive item level by equipping our new Epic Purple Lanyard in your neck slot! This lanyard features a custom-embroidered stat tag, four-color purple ribbon, and a rotating lobster claw clasp. These lanyards are available on a first come, first serve basis to visitors at the Blizzard booth.

MOMOT BLIZZARD PAPERCRAFT: US PREMIERE

Korean Papercraft comes to the United States with Diablo, Thrall and Raynor models. Comic Con will be the US premiere of the new Korean product line by MOMOT.

I reached out to my Insight Editions contact to find out if they would showcase the Diablo III: Book of Tyrael at San Diego Comic Con 2013 on July 18-21. The answer is yes. Attendees will be able to see the book at the booth # 1134.

Press Release

Insight Editions to Debut New Projects at Comic-Con International 2013, Including Game of Thrones, Ender’s Game, Iron Man, The Simpsons, Assassin’s Creed, Gears of War, and More

San Rafael, CA, July 2013—Insight Editions is pleased to announce its presence at Comic-Con International 2013 at the San Diego Convention Center, July 18–21, at booth #1134.

Comic-Con International is an opportunity for Insight to celebrate recent and forthcoming marquee titles, such as Ender’s Game, Iron Man Manual, Game of Thrones, Assassin’s Creed, Gears of War, Pacific Rim, Man of Steel, Fringe, Angry Birds, Homer Simpson’s Little Book of Laziness, The SpongeBob SquarePants Experience, The Art of Blizzard Entertainment, and Diablo III: Book of Tyrael. Amidst specials, giveaways, and promotions for these and other titles, along with 30% off everything in the booth, we’ll also feature the following authors for in-booth signings:

The San Diego Comic Con 2013 booth information is now available. From the list of exhibitors, I hand-picked for our audience some of the booths of interest to visit. Some of them might have potential to display info about upcoming Blizzard licensed products.

The Panel Schedules are not available yet to the public. I’ll update you once those are launched to let you know which day and time Blizzard Publishing plans to make announcements.

The SDCC takes place on July 18-21 at the San Diego Convention Center located at 111 West Harbor Drive San Diego, CA 92101 (Map)

Confirmed

Mega Brands booth 3949 — No new line of World of Warcraft. However, I have confirmation Mega Brands will be giving away a ton of MEGA BLOKS WOW blind packs (I assume the World of Warcraft Mega Bloks #91100 Series 1 Mystery Pack [1 Random Figure]). They will also display a massive Mega Bloks Halo Promethean Knight and give attendees literally thousands of free giveaways. Keep an eye on that booth.

Speculation

Funko’s 2013 catalog shared at the Toy Fair New York revealed the concept art of an upcoming line of StarCraft, Diablo and Warcraft POP Vinyl figures: Jim Raynor, Kerrigan, Tyrael, Diablo, Arthas & Illidan. By now they should have some prototypes to show (speculation of course). Update: Blizzard announced new Funko merchandise that will be on sale at the Blizzard Booth.

Blizzplanet community manager Miaari has spent all day at PAX East playing Diablo III (PS3) and Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. Blizzard Entertainment provided us the press kit with all the information and media available.

FACT SHEET

PRODUCT OVERVIEW

Blizzard Entertainment’s epic action-RPG Diablo® III is moving the eternal war between the High Heavens and the Burning Hells to a new battleground—PlayStation®3! Armed with a controller and a custom-designed interface tailored for consoles, players will step into the role of one of five powerful character classes—barbarian, witch doctor, wizard, monk, or demon hunter—and embark on a dark journey to save the world of Sanctuary from ancient demonic forces. As these heroes adventure from the humble town of New Tristram all the way to the Diamond Gates of the High Heavens, they’ll engage in pulse-pounding combat with hordes of monsters and challenging bosses, grow in experience and ability, and acquire items of incredible power.

Blizzard Entertainment originally released Diablo III for Windows® and Macintosh® PC on May 15, 2012. Within 24 hours it had become the fastest-selling PC game of all time, and as of December 31, 2012, Diablo III had sold through more than 12 million copies worldwide.

IRVINE, Calif.—February 20, 2013—The fate of Sanctuary will soon rest in the hands of PlayStation gamers around the world. Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. today announced that it is developing Diablo® III, the latest entry in its award-winning action–role-playing-game series, for the Sony PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system. The company also today confirmed plans to adapt the game for Sony’s newly announced PlayStation®4, its next-generation computer entertainment system.

The PS3™/PS4™ version of Diablo III will be based on the critically acclaimed core experience of the PC version, including all of the latest upgrades, such as the Paragon leveling system, customizable Monster Power, Brawling, and epic Legendary items. In addition, Blizzard is designing an all-new user interface, including an intuitive control scheme and a new dynamic camera perspective, that will make questing and combat in the world of Sanctuary feel like second nature on PlayStation platforms. Players will be able to battle their way through the story in single-player mode and also experience the hack-and-slash joy of destroying demons and collecting loot together with their friends via seamless four-player online and local co-op modes.

Blizzard also announced today that the PS3 version of Diablo III will be shown live at PAX East, taking place at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center from March 22–24. Attendees there will be the first in the world to pick up a controller and experience the fast-paced action and visceral gameplay of Diablo III via the new custom-designed interface.

“Diablo III looks and plays great on the PlayStation,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We put a lot of care and thought into the PlayStation version to make sure it would deliver an authentic Diablo gaming experience, and we’re really pleased with the results. We can’t wait for players to try it out at PAX East.”

Diablo III continues the epic Diablo storyline, with players taking on the role of one of five heroic characters—barbarian, witch doctor, wizard, monk, or demon hunter—and embarking on a perilous quest to save the world of Sanctuary from the corrupting forces of the Burning Hells. As players adventure through rich and varied settings, they’ll engage in pulse-pounding combat with hordes of monsters and challenging bosses, grow in experience and ability, acquire artifacts of incredible power, and meet key characters who’ll join them in battle or aid them along the way. Diablo III was originally released for Windows® and Macintosh® PC on May 15, 2012 and within 24 hours became the fastest-selling PC game of all time. As of December 31, 2012, Diablo III had sold through more than 12 million copies worldwide.*

To learn more about Diablo III, please visit the official website at http://www.diablo3.com. Further details about Blizzard’s plans for the PlayStation versions of the game will be announced on the site as development progresses. With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available—visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply.

* According to The NPD Group, GfK Chart-Track, and internal company estimates.

Blizzplanet – PAX East Coverage

Blizzard Entertainment invited Blizzplanet and other gaming sites to the PAX East Game Announcement Event. Here are some of our interviews and press media kit coverage.

Blizzard Entertainment Rob Pardo announced at PAX East a team of 15 developers was created exclusively to develop Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft planned to launch beta testing this Summer.

No one expected Blizzard to announce a free to play CCG game.

The game is slated for beta this summer and will be released later this year (2013). It will be released in PC and Mac first with an iPad release coming shortly after. No current plans it seems on Android or other mobile OS.

As someone like myself who has played Magic: The Gathering since 1998, I can tell you that this game looks like an absolute blast. The MTG video games they have recently are quite fun and this seems to be along those lines. This game looks like something for casuals as well as competitive gamers. The booster packs are expected to cost around $1, but you’ll also be able to earn them – kind of the same way League of Legends and other free to play games work where you can slowly earn what you need or go ahead and pay up front.

We have an interview tomorrow for the new game. If you have any questions you’d like to see us ask add them below in the comments!

ANNOUNCEMENT VIDEO

FACT SHEET

Blizzard Entertainment’s Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft is a free-to-play strategy card game for Windows, Macintosh, and iPad. Designed to be deceptively simple and epically engaging for players of all backgrounds, Hearthstone features quick and lively duels that evoke the spirit of a friendly match played beside a crackling tavern fire.

Each player’s card deck centers around a hero representing one of nine iconic Warcraft classes, customized with a set of minions, spells, and/or weapons based on individual strategy and available cards. Players will be able to hone their skills in practice matches against the computer, and when they’re ready for the challenge, they can take on their Battle.net friends and other players in friendly duels. To further develop their decks, players will be able to acquire cards by crafting them and by winning or purchasing new card packs. With hundreds of unique cards to choose from, the potential card combinations and possible strategies are endless!

Game Modes

Play Mode: Duel opponents online to boost your medal ranking and earn packs of cards. Whether you’re a grizzled veteran, curious newcomer, or fall somewhere in between, our matchmaking system will pit you against worthy competition.

The Forge: Put your skills to the test in this mode where deck-building is half the fun. You’ll be presented with a series of card choices from which you must forge your deck, and then you’ll bring that deck into battle against other duelists. In addition to having a chance to win card packs as prizes if you duel well, all participants will keep the cards they selected for their Forge deck.

Practice Mode: Hone your skills and test out new deck ideas against basic or expert AI opponents, and unlock eight playable heroes in the process.

Key Features

Collection Manager: Peruse your ever-expanding card collection and build a variety of custom decks to suit all kinds of strategies. If you’re new to deck-building, you can also get guided help here on how to fill out your deck for competitive play.

Crafting: Disenchant those extra cards in your collection to receive arcane dust, the building block used to construct Hearthstone cards. You can then use this dust to craft the cards needed to complete one or more of your decks or your overall collection.

Friendly Duels: Want to challenge your buddy to a quick match (or just show off your shiny new cards)? Hearthstone is connected to Battle.net, so you’ll be able to fire up a game with a friend right from your friends list.

BETA TESTING

At the FAQ section below there are more details about beta. Beta testing starts this Summer 2013. You can sign up to participate in beta by going to the bottom of the page at the USA Heroesofwarcraft.com website or the Europe website.

Press Release

New free-to-play strategy card game for PC and iPad® lets you hang up your sword . . . and throw down your gauntlet

Hands-on demos at PAX East this weekend, beta test starting soon

BOSTON –(BUSINESS WIRE)– Pull up a chair across from an old friend at the tavern table and prepare for a few rounds of lively card-vs.-card warfare. Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. laid its virtual cards on the table today with the unveiling of Hearthstone™: Heroes of Warcraft™, a new cross-platform free-to-play game for Windows®, Macintosh®, and iPad®.

In Hearthstone, players build card decks centered around one of nine iconic Warcraft® character classes and duel each other for fun, glory, and the chance to win awesome new cards. PAX East attendees are able to go hands-on with Hearthstone this weekend, and Blizzard will begin beta testing for the game very soon—no, seriously.

“We’ve always loved collectible card games at Blizzard, so it’s been exciting to bring everything we love about the genre to life in Hearthstone,” said Mike Morhaime , CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment . “We’re putting a lot of focus into creating a fun new game that’s easy to pick up and play, but also has a lot of depth. We can’t wait to share it with everyone.”

Deceptively simple in design but epically engaging, Hearthstone will be instantly accessible to players regardless of their familiarity with Warcraft or collectible card games. Whether players prefer to wield magic or arms in battle, strike from the shadows or head on—or have never given any of that much thought—they’ll be able to jump right in, create a deck, and get in on the card-slinging action.

In addition to honing their skills in practice matches against the computer and taking on their buddies via their Battle.net® friends list, players can challenge each other in two competitive game modes. “Play Mode” features traditional head-to-head battles, with players facing off for a chance to increase their medal ranking and earn card packs along the way. And for a different type of challenge, players can enter “The Forge,” where they start each match by building a deck from a new set of cards, and then use that deck to duel other Forge participants. Aside from winning new cards, players will be able to round out their collections by purchasing new card packs or disenchanting some of their existing cards to craft the ones they’re missing.

With hundreds of cards to choose from, featuring a wide range of colorful Warcraft spells, weapons, and characters, players will have limitless possibilities for developing and fine-tuning their deck-building strategies. Further details about Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft will be announced as development progresses. To learn more about the game, stay tuned to http://www.PlayHearthstone.com. With multiple games in development, Blizzard Entertainment has numerous positions currently available—visit http://jobs.blizzard.com for more information and to learn how to apply.

Official Screenshots

Video Trailer

Jason Hayes announced via twitter that he composed the The Hearthstone: Warcraft of Heroes soundtrack.

Hearthstone Heroes of Warcraft – Fireside Duel

Hearthstone – Building The Fire

Blizzard employees/developers talk about the development of Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft and more about Team 5 and their role at Blizzard.

FAQ

What is Hearthstone™?

Hearthstone is a free-to-play digital strategy card game that anyone can enjoy. Players choose to play as one of nine epic Warcraft® heroes, and then take turns playing cards from their customizable decks to cast potent spells, use heroic weapons or abilities, or summon powerful characters to crush their opponent.

Why is Blizzard making Hearthstone?

We looooooove collectible card games and have been playing them since our Silicon & Synapse days. Creating a digital strategy card game felt like a natural next step for us, so we put together a small team and have been hammering away at Hearthstone for a while now. We’re excited to be working on something different from our other games, which we’ve wanted to do for a long time. Same goes for creating a game for iPad® in addition to PC. It’s been a thrill to work on Hearthstone and to finally be able to reveal it to the community, and we hope everyone has as much fun playing it as we’ve had building it.

Do I need to know anything about strategy card games or Warcraft to play?

Not at all! We’ve designed Hearthstone so that anyone can get into it, no matter how familiar they are with the Warcraft universe or collectible card games. The game will teach you everything you need to know as you play it.

What are the key game modes and features?

Hearthstone’s key game modes and features include:

Practice mode: Hone your abilities and test out new deck ideas against A.I. opponents of basic or expert skill levels, and unlock new playable heroes in the process.

Play mode: Duel other players to increase your medal ranking—which indicates your skill level and the level of opponents you’ll face (resets weekly)—and earn new card packs along the way. Whether you’re a grizzled veteran or curious newcomer, or fall somewhere in between, Battle.net® matchmaking will pair you up against a worthy opponent.

The Forge: Put your skills to the test in this mode where deck-building is half the fun. Assemble a new deck by choosing from a selection of cards provided for the match, and then duel other Forge participants for a chance to win card packs. The cards you select to build your deck with are yours to keep and can be added to other decks in your collection after your Forge duels are complete. Note that you must trade in a certain number of card packs to participate in a Forge match (further details to be announced later).

What’s the difference between “basic” and “expert” cards?

Basic cards are the “starter” cards that form the foundation of each hero’s class, and are earned each time you play a game (you can have up to two of every basic card in the game in your collection).

Expert cards are cards that can only be found in card packs or created using the crafting system (certain achievements grant them as well). They’re distinguished by their rarity—common (white), rare (blue), epic (purple), or legendary (orange). Generally, the rarer a card is, the more complex it is . . . often providing you with new strategic options. You can have any number of expert cards in your collection, though only two of any common, rare, or epic card, and one of any legendary card, can be placed in a deck.

Both basic and expert cards have important roles to play in all decks, regardless of whether you’re just starting out or are a Hearthstone grandmaster.

What are the different types of cards in Hearthstone?

Once you’ve selected which hero you want to play as, there are three types of cards you can build your deck with in Hearthstone: spells, weapons, and minions. Each card falls into either the “basic” or “expert” card set (see below).

How much does it cost to play?

Hearthstone is free to play, and there are a number of different ways to acquire cards through gameplay. In addition, players will have the option to buy additional card packs through an in-game store using Battle.net Balance or other supported payment methods, such as major credit cards. However, there is no requirement to purchase card packs in order to play Hearthstone.

What are all the different ways a player can acquire cards?

Players will earn their first set of cards as soon as they start playing Hearthstone, and certain game modes and features will award additional cards through gameplay. In addition, players will have the option to purchase additional card packs through the in-game store using Battle.net Balance or other supported payment methods, such as major credit cards. Here are the different ways to get cards:

Practice Mode: Play against A.I. opponents representing different classes to unlock new heroes and basic cards.

Play Mode: By participating in traditional head-to-head matches, players have a chance to win card packs.

The Forge: Build a deck by selecting one card from each of a series of randomized card choices, and then play against other Forge participants. The cards you pick to build your deck are yours to keep—play well enough, and you could win even more. Note that you must trade in a certain number of card packs to participate in The Forge (further details to be announced later).

Crafting: Disenchant expert cards in your collection to receive arcane dust, and then use your collected dust to craft other cards of your choosing. Basic cards cannot be disenchanted.

Card Packs: Purchase card packs containing five random cards using your Battle.net Balance or a variety of supported payment methods. One of the cards will always be of “rare” rarity or greater; in some cases, you may find that one or more additional cards has also “upgraded” to a higher tier of rarity.

Achievements: Certain achievements in the game may grant additional cards.

How many cards are available in the game?

There are over 300 cards in Hearthstone. All of these can be earned, with some cards granted for dueling the A.I. or completing achievements and others found inside card packs that can be earned by playing in Play mode and The Forge. We plan to introduce additional cards over time.

Can I trade cards to other players or sell cards for real cash?

No, Hearthstone is not designed to support these types of transactions.

Can players choose to battle against their friends in addition to taking part in match-made duels?

Of course! You will be able to play against your friends via your Battle.net friends list.

On which platforms will Hearthstone be available?

Hearthstone will initially be available for Windows® and Macintosh®, with a version for iPad coming later.

What comes in a card pack?

Each pack comes with five random cards. Your chance to receive a particular card depends on its rarity: common (white), rare (blue), epic (purple), or legendary (orange). You’re guaranteed to receive at least one card of rare or better quality per pack. Each card in the pack also has a chance to upgrade to a “Golden” version of the same card.

How do I apply for the beta test?

Just visit www.playhearthstone.com to opt-in with your Battle.net account!

How will I get cards in the beta test? Do I need to purchase them with real money?

We do plan to test the in-game store during the beta test, and players will be able to purchase card packs using their Battle.net Balance or other Battle.net-supported payment methods. Players will also be able to obtain cards through Practice mode, Play mode, and The Forge.

The card pack price in the beta test does not necessarily reflect what the final prices will be at launch.

Will the cards I earn or purchase in the beta test carry over into the live game? What happens if I purchased beta card packs for real money?

Prior to launch your card collection will be reset, and any cards you acquired through a purchased card pack or earned during the beta test will be removed. However, any purchases you made during the beta test will be credited back to you in the form of new, unopened card packs at launch, equal to the value you spent during the beta test. Please note that these will not contain the same cards as those received from card packs in the beta test. Also, as a thank-you for testing out the in-game store during Hearthstone’s beta phase, everyone who purchased a card pack in the beta test will get a special gift.

I don’t live in the US; can I still participate in the beta test?

We hope to launch a beta test in other game regions after the initial beta-test launch in North America, but we don’t have any specifics to announce at this time. Stay tuned for updates.

Where will Hearthstone be available?

Our goal is to make Hearthstone available in the same regions supported by World of Warcraft, but we don’t have details to share just yet.

THE LAUNCH DETAILS (SO FAR)

When will Hearthstone be released?

We’re not sure yet—what we do know is that we’re going to take as much time as necessary to make sure Hearthstone is as fun and polished as possible.

How do I get Hearthstone?

Once the game is live, you’ll be able to download it free directly from Blizzard. We’ll provide further details, including how to purchase card packs, as we get closer to launch.

What ages are appropriate?

Hearthstone has not yet received its final rating.

On which platforms will Hearthstone be available?

Hearthstone will initially be available for Windows® and Macintosh®, with a version for iPad coming later.

Where will Hearthstone be available?

Our goal is to make Hearthstone available in the same regions supported by World of Warcraft, but we don’t have details to share just yet.

When will the iPad version be available?

Hearthstone will be available in the App Store as soon as possible after its release on Windows and Macintosh PCs.

Will Hearthstone be localized? Which languages?

We’re planning to localize Hearthstone in the same languages as World of Warcraft wherever possible. We’ll post the final language list as soon as we can.

I play World of Warcraft, too! Can I earn anything for my WoW characters by playing Hearthstone?

We’re looking into a few possibilities and hope to have more details to share in the future.

How do Hearthstone and World of Warcraft relate to each other?

Both games take place in the Warcraft universe, and World of Warcraft players will recognize a lot of aspects of Azeroth in Hearthstone. That said, you don’t need to even know what World of Warcraft is to have loads of fun in Hearthstone.

THE GAME MECHANICS

What makes Hearthstone different from other card games?

We’ve designed Hearthstone to be easy to learn so that anyone can get into it—but it’s also deep enough that even the most elite duelists will find it a challenge to master. Hearthstone is designed around short, action-packed duels that generally take 10–15 minutes to play.

How many players can play in a multiplayer game?

More than one, but fewer than three.

Which heroes are featured in Hearthstone?

You’ll be able to build a deck based on one of nine epic Warcraft heroes, each representing one of the original World of Warcraft classes: Druid, Hunter, Mage, Paladin, Priest, Rogue, Shaman, Warlock, and Warrior.

Wait, what about Monk? Where’s Death Knight?!

The roster of heroes represents the nine classes that were available at World of Warcraft’s launch. It’s still too early to discuss our plans for heroes aside from these, though the game will continue to evolve over time. So practice patience, young monk! And death knight, you’re immortal, so you can chill for now too, right?

Will additional content be available in the future?

We plan to add more content and additional cards as the game evolves, but we don’t have any details to share just yet. Right now, our focus is making sure the game is as fun and polished as possible right out of the gate.

How does Practice mode work?

In the game’s Practice mode, you choose to play against a computer-controlled hero of any class at one of two different difficulty levels. Challenging that hero will unlock it for play and expand the types of cards you’re able to add to your collection. Players will earn a fledgling Mage deck just by launching the game, but that’s only the beginning of the journey. . . .

Can I create new decks or modify my current deck?

Absolutely! Customizing the perfect deck to suit your play style or to counter a rival is a huge part of Hearthstone. As your card collection grows, the in-game Collection Manager will help you create, save, and edit multiple decks for whatever situation or play style you can think of.

What if I’m new at deck-building and need some help?

We want anyone to be able to get into Hearthstone and build a deck without having to understand all the nuances of deck building. To that end, we’re developing a feature that will examine your deck and card collection and provide suggestions for what you should add. You’ll be provided with brief reasoning behind these recommendations so that you can learn a little more about how to build a great deck.

What comes in a card pack?

Each pack comes with five random cards. Your chance to receive a particular card depends on its rarity: common (white), rare (blue), epic (purple), or legendary (orange). You’re guaranteed to receive at least one rare or better card per pack. Each card in the pack also has a chance to upgrade to a “Golden” version of the same card.

What is a Golden card?

All cards found in a card pack have a chance to be upgraded to a Golden card when the pack is opened. This upgrade will affect the appearance of the card but not its power.

Does Hearthstone support asynchronous play?

Hearthstone is designed to be a fast-paced experience. That being said, we recognize that players may want to play the game in short bursts with their friends over a longer period of time, so we’re looking into the possibility of supporting asynchronous play.

How does The Forge work?

You’ll be able to enter The Forge by trading in unopened card packs (further details to be announced later). These packs can be earned free in Play mode (or won in previous Forge games that you might have played), or you can purchase them from the in-game store. Once you are in, you will build a special Forge deck, choosing one card at a time from a series of card options until you have a full deck of 30. You’ll then duel with that deck against other Forge participants until you win or lose a specific number of matches. At the end, you keep all the expert cards that were in your deck—and depending on how well you performed you could win additional card packs.

How do I disenchant and craft cards?

Expert cards can be “disenchanted”—giving the player a resource called arcane dust but destroying the card in the process. Once a player collects enough dust, they can use it to create any card in the game, including Golden cards, permanently adding that card to the player’s collection. The amount of dust received and/or the cost of the card created depends on the card’s rarity (common, rare, epic, or legendary).

Only expert cards—that is, cards that come in card packs or are earned through playing in The Forge—can be disenchanted. Basic cards (i.e., cards with no rarity indicator) cannot be disenchanted.

THE TECHNICAL STUFF

How do I pay for cards?

On Windows and Macintosh PCs, players will be able to purchase card packs within the game using their Battle.net Balance or any other Battle.net-supported payment method attached to their account.

On the iPad, players will be able to make purchases using the payment methods they’ve associated with their AppleID in the App Store. The exact process will differ slightly for each region. We’ll provide further details as we get closer to launch.

What are the system requirements for Hearthstone?

We’ll announce specific system requirements closer to launch.

Will I be able to add friends in Hearthstone and chat with people?

Yes! The folks in your Battle.net friends list (both BattleTag and Real ID friends) are available for games or conversation. Players will not be able to chat with anyone who is not on their friends list. However, players will be able to choose from a variety of emotes for basic communication during games.

How can I communicate with opponents during a game who are not on my friends list?

We have an emote system that lets you communicate in a safe way with random folks you are playing with online. You can thank or congratulate or threaten your opponent with the voice of the hero you are playing.

Are you supporting Android tablets?

Hearthstone will launch on Windows, Macintosh, and, later on, iPad. We’re looking into the possibility of supporting additional platforms in the future, but we don’t have any further info to share at this time.

Will Hearthstone run on my iPhone?

Hearthstone is for Windows and Macintosh PCs and iPad only.

Do you need a Battle.net account to play Hearthstone?

We’re still working out the details for iPad, but you will need a Battle.net account to play Hearthstone on PC. If you don’t already have a Battle.net account, you can create one at http://www.battle.net.

Do you need a World of Warcraft account to play Hearthstone?

Nay, ye do not!

Will there be parental controls for Hearthstone?

Yes. Parents will be able to use Battle.net’s Parental Controls system to restrict their child’s ability to purchase additional card packs within Hearthstone.

THE BETA TEST

How will I get cards in the beta test? Do I need to purchase them with real money?

We do plan to test the in-game store during the beta test, and players will be able to purchase card packs using their Battle.net Balance or other Battle.net-supported payment methods. Players will also be able to obtain cards through Practice mode, Play mode, and The Forge.
The card pack price in the beta test does not necessarily reflect what the final prices will be at launch.

Will the cards I earn or purchase in the beta test carry over into the live game? What happens if I purchased beta card packs for real money?

Prior to launch your card collection will be reset, and any cards you acquired through a purchased card pack or earned during the beta test will be removed. However, any purchases you made during the beta test will be credited back to you in the form of new, unopened card packs at launch, equal to the value you spent during the beta test. Please note that these will not contain the same cards as those received from card packs in the beta test. Also, as a thank you for testing out the in-game store during Hearthstone’s beta phase, everyone who purchased a card pack in the beta test will get a special gift.

Will my progress in the beta test—unlocking heroes, earning cards, my ranking—carry over to the final game?

No way! In the interest of fairness, everything will be reset after the beta test ends so that players can be on equal footing when the game launches.

How do I apply for the beta test?

Just visit www.playhearthstone.com to opt-in with your Battle.net account!

I don’t live in the US; can I still participate in the beta test?

We hope to launch a beta test in other game regions after the initial beta-test launch in North America, but we don’t have any specifics to announce at this time. Stay tuned for updates.

Kevin Carrillo (Sixen), Eldorian & DJTyrant (Blizzplanet), Eroldren and Medros (AllThingsAzeroth) have been brewing a barrel of speculations of what Blizzard Entertainment might be announcing today in barely 5 hours from the time of this posting.

The first thought is Blizzard All-Stars. However, Blizzard Entertainment already announced this game at BlizzCon 2011, and attendees even played it. The press invite says Blizzard can’t wait for us to have this on our hands. Blizzard All-Stars has already been on our hands at BlizzCon, and second — why so much secrecy about a game that has already been announced? Unless it’s a brand-new game nobody has heard of yet.

Rob Pardo tweeted recently the announcement is Blizzard’s NEXT GAME.

Considering Blizzard stated in the press invitation this (New Game) is not a sequel, expansion nor related to the Next-Gen MMO Titan — there isn’t a lot of room to speculate on.

The press invite also says “We’ve been working on a little something, different from our other games.” Now this one can be interpreted in two ways:

Different from [Diablo III, World of Warcraft, StarCraft II] — meaning a new IP, or;

Different from [RPG, MMO, RTS] — in which case, the options remaining are: First-Person Shooter (FPS), Handheld game (PS Vita), or Mobile Game (iPad/MS Surface/etc.)

Among some of the creative thoughts circulating among the scholars:

StarCraft: Ghost — The press invite says different to our other games. As stated above it could be interpreted as non-MMO, non-RPG, non-RTS. StarCraft: Ghost was an FPS game. StarCraft: Ghost was postponed (meaning: to put off to a later time). PS4 was just announced and Blizzard is supporting it with Diablo III (PS4).

Project Blackstone — either stand alone new game based on StarCraft, or part of StarCraft: Ghost.

World of Warcraft TCG Online — the Cryptozoic Entertainment World of Warcraft Trading Card Game has been very popular. What if Blizzard brings it to mobile games? Glenn Rane (Blizzard Art Director, Creative Development) recently joined a team of friends and launched a Kickstarter to develop InKarnate … a digital RPG tabletop or Roleplaying-Game Tool Set. What if … WoW TCG Online or WOW RPG Tabletop online?

Heroes of Warcraft. Warcraft Battles. This title really sounds like a mobile game. Could it be something akin to Pet Battles, but instead of pets, it’s heroes? I know, that sounds a lot like Blizzard All-Stars, but that’s DOTA-style. I mean … Street Fighter-style. Mortal Kombat-style.

Just the other day, Chris Metzen and Micky Neilson were playing Samurai Showdown2 — for example.

The community has certainly been pulling their hairs on this one ever since the Press Invite, and it just shows how much love and passion we have for Blizzard Entertainment and their video games. Whatever this new game is, it will have a lot of expectations and criticism. Something worth discussing throughout gaming websites, fansites, forums and social media.

Whether any of us was right or wrong, it doesn’t matter no more. The game will be announced within a few hours. Make sure to watch the Twitch Livestream to witness the official Blizzard game announcement.

Blizzplanet staff member Miaari is attending the Blizzard Entertainment Press Event at PAX East 2013 in Boston this upcoming Friday, March 22nd. Blizzard Entertainment invited a handful of Gaming sites and fansites to the event, including Blizzplanet.

1. Miaari is taking video of the entire game announcement. Make sure to check us during the weekend for any update on when the video will be available or subscribe to our Blizzplanet Weekly YouTube Channel for an automated alert.

2. We are taking questions from fans to forward them to the developers at PAX East. You can ask bonafide questions about Diablo III (PS3) or about the new game to be announced. You can submit your questions below in the comments (can login with Facebook, Google or Disqus account), or you can submit your question at the following Facebook page or via Twitter using the @Blizzplanet #BlizzardPAXEast hashtag.

If you didn’t watch our most recent Blizzplanet Weekly with host Chris Arnone, click the image below to launch the video. He discusses our speculations on what this new Blizzard game is. Could it be related to StarCraft II Project Blackstone? Warcraft related? A mobile game?

In this week’s Blizzplanet Weekly, our host Chris Arnone talks about several topics around all Blizzard Entertainment video games. Mists of Pandaria will see no additional 5-person dungeons, Major League Gaming (MLG) in Dallas is this weekend where 32 players will clash to the end to claim the victor prize, Diablo III developers are moving away from the Auction House, and finally — Chris Arnone enumerates what are all the facts surrounding the new game Blizzard is revealing at PAX East, and what it is certainly not.

Will it be something related to Project Blackstone? Maybe a revamped StarCraft: Ghost intermingled with the Heart of the Swarm story? Will it be an MMO or a Mobile game?

Everyone thought the Project Blackstone website was a promotional campaign for StarCraft II: Heart of the Swarm. However, there are still some unlocked content and absolutely nothing is mentioned about Project Blackstone in the Heart of the Swarm single-player campaign.

The Project Blackstone creator, Cameron Dayton (Senior Story Developer), tweeted recently “I think it’s starting to dawn on people that #ProjectBlackstone was more than just a promotional piece for #HotS – this story ain’t done yet” — hmm?

A few weeks ago, I remember Cameron Dayton revealed Project Blackstone’s story took two years in the making. This put me to rethink and ponder … does a website story and the ficticious characters tweeting each other on Twitter take two years to write? Or is there more to Project Blackstone than just a Free online short story? That’s a lot of time and manpower budget.

Blizzplanet is giving away a Sunday-Only ticket for PAX East to go play Diablo III on PS3. To join the drawing for a chance to a FREE ticket, simply “post” a comment at the following [YouTube Blizzplanet Weekly page] saying: “I want a PAX East ticket”. Don’t forget to subscribe to the channel.

Hurry up, though. PAX East is next week. The winner will be announced on Sunday, March 17th. Be sure to check out your YouTube inbox that day or to check out our Blizzplanet news (front page) for the winner announcement.

Blizzard Entertainment today confirmed the big reveal event at PAX East 2013 will be a public event — not Press-only as many of us on the media side wondered, as the email invitation was sent to press only originally, not to Blizzard customers in general.

Those of you who are attending PAX East on “Friday”, read the details in our previous article. The event will be held on March 22nd at 10:00 a.m. EST.

Blizzard has a little something new, and they’re bringing it to PAX East! It’s different from their other games, so it’s not a sequel, expansion, or that rumored next-gen MMO. Be among the first to see what the legendary development studio has been working on in this presentation.

Blizzard Entertainment emailed several fansites and press writers a mysterious email inviting us to be alert to a special announcement at the upcoming 2013 PAX East.

Blizzard: “We’ve been working on a little something, different from our other games… It’s not a sequel, expansion, or that rumored next-gen MMO, but it’s something we’re excited for you to get your hands on”.

The public already knows that the Diablo III (PS3) will be playable at PAX East. There are demo stations for PAX East attendees to play the PlayStation 3 version of Diablo III.

Thus, this cryptic email is suggesting there is something else Blizzard Entertainment is planning to reveal at the upcoming event. It is not a sequel (rule out StarCraft III, WarCraft IV, Diablo IV).

It is not an expansion. (rule out World of Warcraft: The next-expansion-title, StarCraft II: X-title, or Diablo III: x-title).

It is not either the next-gen MMO. But it is something we will be excited to get on our hands. Hmm. So this seems to be the announcement of a new game that is secretly in development.

It could be Blizzard All-Stars, but since we already know that game has been in development, and 2011 BlizzCon attendees already played a demo — I lean to think this might be something new we haven’t heard about before.

The PAX East event where Blizzard Entertainment plans to make a mysterious announcement will be held on Friday, March 22 at 10:00 a.m. (Naga Theater @ PAX East).

UPDATE: Blizzard Entertainment announced Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft at PAX East. It was the mysterious game announcement mentioned in this article. Read more at our PAX East 2013 coverage page.

During the New York Comic Con 2012, I reported Mega Bloks had plans to deploy an ongoing web show, and to announce an upcoming contest aimed at machinima and filmmakers with uber-loot$.

Today we had the first sign of life from Mega Bloks with a Toymation teaser. The web show will launch on November 2012. Stay tuned.

Watch the teaser. Comment your thoughts and opinions about it on Facebook, and whether you would love to watch the ongoing web show.

Those who retweet our topic version at Twitter will be elegible to a chance at winning one of the BlizzCon 2011 exclusive jade Mega Bloks World of Warcraft Chen Stormstout edition given to us at New York Comic Con 2012.

I want our army of Blizzard licensed product geeks to stay alert on Monday, October 15th to the Cartoon Network. During my visit today to New York Comic Con 2012, I met with Mega Bloks David James Burgess (Director of Marketing). This TV commercial will air on a few kid networks.

The talented people at Mega Bloks are planning to do a couple of A.W.E.S.O.M.E. things that we rarely see in Blizzard Entertainment products.

Expect very soon a series of webisodes (I don’t remember if it was once every two weeks) where you will see the Mega Bloks World of Warcraft sets in full animated action.

Even more awesome than that? There is no ETA, but there might be a contest down the road where YOU can submit your own Mega Bloks World of Warcraft animations for a VERY big prizes. I don’t know about you, but I’m thrilled to hear the best machinima filmmakers will be flooding YouTube with very creative animations for a chance at some phat lootz.

Mega Bloks will launch a new update line of World of Warcraft sets at the end of 2012, including the Sha of Anger and the Alliance/Horde Pandaren Monk sets. We’ll have the opportunity to review them soon. They are gonna send a few our way.

Once the Mega Bloks World of Warcraft TV Commercial hits YouTube, I’ll announce some Blizzplanet giveaways. David was kind to supply us with a few posters and exlusive jade Chen Stormstout figures.

The event was led by New York Times Best Selling Author Micky Neilson (Blizzard Publishing Lead), Dave Kosak (World of Warcraft Lead Quest Designer) and Michael Stackpole (science fiction and fantasy author).

Vol’jin, Shadows of the Horde

The upcoming World of Warcraft patch 5.1 will focus a lot on the book’s plot. Players will meet Vol’jin throughout Pandaria in patch 5.1. He wants to dispense indiscriminate justice against Garrosh. He’ll make sure to be behind his downfall. In the novel, Vol’jin will have few contemplative moments at a Pandaria monastery, learning wisdom from the Pandaren.

The novel’s main characters are Vol’jin and Chen Stormstout.

We were told Vol’jin will be featured on patch 5.2 too. The developers are hard at work on a new Vol’jin NPC model and new Zandalari troll models in patch 5.1.

Release Date: Q2 2013

This upcoming World of Warcraft novel focuses on Vol’jin, the courageous shadow hunter and leader of the Darkspear tribe whose guile and cunning have made him a staunch ally of the Warchief Thrall. Shadows of the Horde follows Vol’jin to the lost continent of Pandaria, where the troll chieftain’s loyalties are put to the ultimate test when a member of his own faction moves to assassinate him. . . .

Aided by the renowned brewmaster Chen Stormstout, Vol’jin takes refuge in a remote mountain monastery to recover from his wounds. His time there, however, is far from peaceful, as intense visions of the past assault the Darkspear chieftain, and the ancient Zandalari tribe mounts a series of attacks on Pandaria. In his struggle to make sense of what’s happening, Vol’jin must ultimately decide where his allegiances lay—a choice that could save or doom his people . . . and forever alter the fate of the Horde.

StarCraft II: Flashpoint

The novel gets into the relationship between Jim Raynor and Sarah Kerrigan through flashbacks, and the novel starts right away seconds after the cinematic ending of StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty when Raynor is carrying Sarah on his arms, and bridges out the gap between Wings of Liberty and Heart of the Swarm . We’ll find out what was Tychus’ outcome.

Micky was very mysterious on when Heart of the Swarm is coming out, but his voice tone hinted it’s not too far away. Take in mind Activision Blizzard Third Quarter Financial Results Conference Call is taking place on November 7th.

It’s possible the official announcement of Heart of the Swarm’s release date takes place prior to the conference call, or at the event itself. We will know sooner or later. Pre-order StarCraft II: Flashpoint (Nov 6).

World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects

A new eBook by Richard A. Knaak titled World of Warcraft: Dawn of the Aspects. This eBook will be available in four parts. The first part will be available on January 15th, 2013.

The Dragon Aspects are mortal now, and going through a lot of changes. We’ll see these characters before they became Aspects, we’ll see Galakron and the Proto drakes. Readers will explore a lot of past history with this four-part eBook.

Format: Serialized eBook
Release Date: Starting January 15, 2013

Dawn of the Aspects is a four-part serial novel that highlights a lesser-known period of the Dragon Aspects’ history. Written by Richard A. Knaak (World of Warcraft: Stormrage, Warcraft: War of the Ancients trilogy), the mini-series follows the Aspects at a moment in time before they’d been granted their powers, when they were called upon to band together against the proto-dragon Galakrond.

Diablo III: Heroes Rise, Darkness Falls

Diablo III: Heroes Rise, Darkness Falls is an Anthology of five short stories from the Diablo III site, and two additional stories that aren’t focused on any specific class, aimed at expanding the Diablo III universe. This is a digital eBook to be available in Kindle.

Release Date: November 27, 2012

This eBook anthology collects five dark tales based on Diablo III’s character classes—the barbarian, demon hunter, monk, witch doctor, and wizard — which were originally published on the Diablo III website prior to the game’s release. This collection also includes two never-before-available short stories set in the Diablo universe that shed more light on the shadow-shrouded world of Sanctuary.

Blizzard Entertainment Publishing Panel Video – Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Additional Sources

For more details about the panel and for details about other booths providing sneak peeks of upcoming Blizard licensed products go here for the schedules.

UDON held a panel at the New York Comic Con 2012 to reveal details of their entire 2013 product line up, which includes gaming art books, and popular japanese manga exclusively translated by UDON to english.

Blizzplanet shares with you the entire UDON panel videos. It was split into four parts — check them out at the bottom.

This is the list of UDON products coming out through November 2012 and 2013:

Blizzplanet attended the UDON panel (Room 1406) at the 2012 New York Comic Con (Javits Convention Center). They unveiled a series of gaming and manga products arriving on 2013, including the World of Warcraft Tribute book — a collection of fan art to be submitted by thousands of professional artists and amateur Art students, and talented people via an upcoming contest.

The contest will begin on November 1st, 2012 and participants will have the chance to submit their artwork until January 15th, 2013. I recommend to start your best masterpiece as soon as possible to get ready for this contest. You already have a 20 days heads up before the contest begins, which is awesome.

UDON and Blizzard Entertainment will cautiously evaluate each contest submission to pick the best pieces of artwork for the book. I’m completely amazed by this project which might help a lot of artists get their name out there in the industry, and shine a nice spot on their resume.

Visit the official World of Warcraft Tribute Contest website at http://www.warcrafttribute.com — details to surface on November 1. Blizzplanet will be on top of this one for you.

I had the opportunity to exchange business cards with Chris Butcher (UDON Director of Marketing) to sync with Blizzard Entertainment further details, previews, and more about the World of Warcraft Tribute Art Book.

Artists from around the world are invited to share their unique visions of Azeroth with the World of Warcraft community

OCTOBER 12, 2012: At the UDON Entertainment panel at New York Comic Con, UDON today announced that it has teamed up with Blizzard Entertainment to produce the next epic installment in their ‘Tribute’ series of deluxe art books: WORLD OF WARCRAFT® TRIBUTE! This massive collection will offer hundreds of professional and hobby artists the opportunity to show off their artistic chops and pay homage to their favorite characters, settings, and moments from Blizzard’s popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG).

Beginning November 1, artists from around the world are invited to submit their original, World of Warcraft–inspired artwork for consideration to be included in this collection. UDON’s previous ‘Tribute’ books have served as a “Who’s Who” of international comic, concept, game, and fan artists, and WORLD OF WARCRAFT TRIBUTE will continue that tradition by collecting imaginative takes on Blizzard’s game world—from anime and western comic styles to cartoons, pixel-based art, sculptures, and more—whatever medium the artist chooses to express their unique vision of the Warcraft universe.

Blizzard and UDON will select the most epic and impressive submissions to be included in WORLD OF WARCRAFT TRIBUTE, which will premiere as a special limited-edition hardcover book at San Diego Comic-Con 2013. With thousands of entries expected, submitting artists are encouraged to bring their “A” game if they aspire to have their work included in the collection.

“We couldn’t be more excited about this project,” said Erik Ko, Editor In Chief of UDON. “We really respect the amazing universe Blizzard has created with the Warcraft series, and the games have been a major source of inspiration to the artistic community for years. This book will be our biggest Tribute undertaking ever, and we’re already anticipating all of the amazing illustrations that will soon be headed our way.”

“We’ve always been humbled by the fact that some amazing artists out there have drawn inspiration from our games over the years,” said Paul Sams, chief operating officer of Blizzard Entertainment. “Deciding which pieces to include in this book will be a huge challenge, but we’re looking forward to working with UDON to select the best of the best and put together an epic collection. And who knows — maybe in the process, we’ll discover some great new artists to invite to work with us on future Blizzard games.”

Since its launch in 2004, World of Warcraft has become the most popular subscription-based MMORPG in the world. The original game and its four expansions, including the recently released Mists of Pandaria™, have earned critical acclaim and captured the imaginations of millions of players around the globe.

For full WORLD OF WARCRAFT® TRIBUTE artwork submission details, head to WarcraftTribute.com. Contest entries will be accepted beginning November 1, 2012 through noon PST on January 15, 2013.

About Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.

Best known for blockbuster hits including World of Warcraft® and the Warcraft®, StarCraft®, and Diablo® franchises, Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. (www.blizzard.com), a division of Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI), is a premier developer and publisher of entertainment software renowned for creating some of the industry’s most critically acclaimed games. Blizzard Entertainment’s track record includes fourteen #1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year awards. The company’s online-gaming service, Battle.net®, is one of the largest in the world, with millions of active players.

About UDON Entertainment

UDON Entertainment is a publisher of original art books, graphic novels, and manga. UDON’s best-known projects are those based on popular video game franchises including Street Fighter®, Okami®, Mega Man®, Darksiders®, Valkyria Chronicles, and more. The publisher’s ever-growing library also includes English editions of several Japanese manga titles, and the anthology art book series Apple. For more information visit www.UDONentertainment.com

I arrived to the Javits Convention Center in the late afternoon to pick up my press badge, when the background noise caught my attention. I decided to give myself a tour throughout the halls.

Insight Editions

I visited the Insight Editions Booth #1882 to pick up the Spring 2013 catalog. The Art of Blizzard Entertainment contains 352 pages. It’s a massive book measuring 9.25 x 12.75. I’ll post an individual article about this product during the weekend. You can pre-order it here.

The Art of Blizzard
Written by Nick Carpenter, Sam Didier, and Chris Metzen

An epic volume of art and behind-the-scenes insights, The Art of Blizzard Entertainment celebrates the studio’s genesis by examining the creative forces behind these games and showcasing their artistry through more than 700 pieces of concept art, paintings, and sketches. Commentary on the art is provided by Blizzard Entertainment’s own Nick Carpenter, Sam Didier, and Chris Metzen, who’ve each played important roles in shaping Blizzard’s game universes over the years.

Hardcover: $75.00ISBN: 978-1-60887-027-1

The Limited Edition of the Art of Blizzard Entertainment comes in a die-cut slipcase, which houses an exclusive version of the book and a portfolio of four high-quality giclee prints of paintings by Blizzard’s most celebrated artists: Samwise Didier, Brom and Wei Wang. Limited to 3,000 copies. ($150) — ISBN: 978-1-60887-138-4

Simon & Schuster

When I walked into the Simon & Schuster’s Booth #829, I was greeted by Associate Publicist Stephanie DeLuca who immediately offered her support to Blizzplanet. Ed Schlesinger (Gallery Books editor) recognized me from past events. That guy is so amazing. You can breath his passion for Blizzard Entertainment’s novels. I wanted to share with you guys a brief sneak peek into what to expect in StarCraft II: Flashpoint by Christie Golden.

The StarCraft: Flashpoint book was there at the booth. Attendees can pick it on their hands and browse through the pages. It came hot off the press barely a couple of days ago, and getting ready to ship on November 6th.

From what he told me with as little spoilers as possible, but enough to spark such an interest to geek me out (with the shivers and all that) — the novel starts off just a couple of seconds right after the StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty’s cinematic ending, and they are in Planet Char. It’s packed with thrilling action as they try to retreat through hordes of Zerg taking with them their precious cargo: Sarah Kerrigan. Emphasis on “this is no longer the Queen of Blades”. I so want to read this N.O.W.!

Don’t worry. Simon & Schuster has Blizzplanet covered. A review copy will be arriving soon. Expect a review and an interview with Christie Golden in upcoming weeks.

Mega Bloks

Mega Bloks is showcasing the new line up of World of Warcraft sets expected the last quarter of 2012. They tweeted us to tell you this: “The first 100 at the Mega Bloks World of Warcraft Booth get a Chen “Jade” Stormstout Figure (Friday 4:30pm and Saturday).” Ask for yours, while supplies last.

Walk-in into their Booth #1206 to check out the upcoming line of Pandaren Monk sets and the Sha of Anger. Mega Bloks posted in Facebook some pictures a few days ago. These are the photos I took today:

You can find the massive Thrall weighing a ton near the electric stairs by the Javits convention center’s lobby. They have a huge version of the Zeppelin and the Frostmourne sword made of Mega Bloks.

Where to find the Blizzard Publishing Panel on Saturday?

I was not expecting to find the New York Comic Con open today, only went into exploration-mode to let you know where to find the Room 1A14 on Saturday at 2:45pm. The room where the Blizzard Entertainment Publishing Panel will take place at.

I recommend to open the door of the Javits Convention Center and follow the whole length of the lobby — takes about four minutes to do that. Walk down the non-mechanical stairs and continue following the long lobby. You will see the massive Mega Bloks World of Warcraft Thrall statue.

At the far end of the lobby you will see a huge banner of THE WALKING DEAD. Near that huge banner to your left you will see a Coca-Cola Drink Machine and next to it the mechanical-stairway (as seen in the photo below).

Go down to the lower floor. Don’t move left or right. Just keep walking forward as soon as you get out of the stairs all the way to the end. Room 1A14 is at the end. The door is to the left side of the hallway.

I entered the room. It’s pretty big with approximately 100 chairs. I’ll be there taking video on the first row.

New York Comic-Con attendees will be able to see the latest prototypes from Mega Bloks World of Warcraft line up scheduled to hit retail late November. There will be a lot more newness to come but make sure to check out these cool Pandaren Micro Action Figures at the Mega Bloks booth #1206. Follow them in Facebook.

Blizzplanet will be there taking photos and video. Come back on Friday, October 12-13 to check out our New York Comic Con 2012 coverage.

New York Comic Con tickets are now sold out. All New York Comic Con attendees should read this schedule to get a sneak peek at upcoming Blizzard books and toys. Share with friends in social networks and forums.

Blizzplanet’s Medievaldragon will be attending Friday and Saturday to live blog. Stay tuned for photos and video. Note: Wear a hoodie, jacket, and gloves. Starting yesterday, temperature dropped at 43-50 in NYC.

Check out our New York Comic Con Floor Map

Blizzard Entertainment Publishing Panel

Blizzard Entertainment Publishing is holding a panel at the 2012 New York Comic Con on Saturday, October 13 between 2:45 pm – 3:45 pm

This panel is taking place at Room 1A14. Learn what’s happening in the world of Blizzard books with panelists Michael Stackpole (science fiction and fantasy author), Micky Neilson (Blizzard Publishing Lead), and Dave Kosak (World of Warcraft Lead Quest Designer).

They will be unveiling a brand new World of Warcraft novel in 2013. Get in-depth with the storylines and quests that continues to drive the largest MMO in the world! Plus, have a chance to chat with the creative minds behind the Blizzard publishing program.

Blizzard & UDON Panel

On Friday, October 12th between 7:45pm – 8:45pm — Blizzard and UDON will reveal details of an upcoming Blizzard-themed TRIBUTE art book and contest. Visit Room 1A06.

Micky Neilson and Sean “Cheeks” Galloway will be signing copies of the DC World of Warcraft: Pearl of Pandaria graphic novel.

Friday, October 12, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
DC Booth #1238

Blizzard Licensed Products Booths

Insight Editions: Get a sneak peek at The Art of Blizzard, an upcoming book which offers an exclusive look at the ideas and imagery that have defined over 20 years of Blizzard gaming. Booth #1882

Mega Bloks: NYCC attendees will be treated to an in-depth look at the making of the Mega Bloks World of Warcraft toys and a sneak peek at the winter line up! Mega Bloks will also be giving away a limited number of Chen Stormstout posters and Chen figures. Booth #1206

Simon & Schuster: Looking for more Blizzard universe lore? A library of World of Warcraft, Diablo, and StarCraft novels will be available for purchase at the Simon & Schuster booth. Booth #829

Attention all New York Comic Con attendees: The 2012 WCG USA National Finals will take place this year at the 2012 New York Comic Con through October 12-14th at Hall 3B. Add this page to your “My Show Planner” mobile account. Download the mobile app here.

Attendees are invited to try out gaming on the Samsung Notebook Series 7 gamer demo stations at booth #1839. There will be giveaways too.

Come see the top gamers in America compete for a spot on Team USA to compete at the 2012 WCG Global Finals in Kunshan, China.

VIP Party

The WCG will be hosting a Player/VIP party on Saturday, October 13 at Lucky Strike Lanes across the street from New York Comic Con. The only way to enter this Player/VIP party is to private message WCG on Facebook for tickets.

Update

Samsung and Wargaming Team Up for the World Cyber Games at New York Comic Con

NEW YORK, NY – October 3, 2012 – World Cyber Games Inc. (WCG) officially announced that Samsung Electronics America (SEA), Inc. and Wargaming will be featured partners of the WCG 2012 USA National Finals. The WCG USA 2012 USA National Finals will be held at New York Comic Con at the Javits Center from October 11-14, 2012. The top professional and competitive gamers that qualified online through the WCG 2012 USA online qualifiers (http://us.wcg.com) will compete live on-stage during the show to determine which 14 players will represent Team USA at the WCG Global Finals to be held in Kunshan, China from November 29 to December 2, 2012. Gamers will be competing in Wargaming’s World of Tanks and other official WCG titles including StarCraft® II: Wings of Liberty™, FIFA 12, and Cross Fire®

The New York Comic Con (http://newyorkcomiccon.com) is the event host of the WCG 2012 USA National Finals. New York Comic Con attracted over 105,000 attendees in 2011, easily making it the second largest comic book and pop culture gathering in the United States and the largest on the East Coast. The New York Comic Con attracts attendees from around the globe and nearly every state in the nation to celebrate the latest and greatest in the world of popular culture, comic books, video games, and technology.

At the WCG 2012 USA National Finals, the top U.S. professional gamers and New York Comic Con attendees will be able to play World of Tanks on the ultimate laptop for gaming enthusiasts – the Samsung Series 7 Gamer. Designed with feedback from passionate PC gamers in mind, the award-winning Series 7 Gamer sports a top-of-the-line feature set including a 17.3-inch full HD LCD display, high quality Dolby® Home Theater® surround sound, rich NVIDIA® GeForce® graphics and a 3rd generation Intel® Core™ i7 processor. These provide gamers with a rich, immersive audio and visual experience, virtually flawless playback no matter how fast the game’s action and unrivalled speed right from the start.

Wargaming’s World of Tanks is a globally popular team-based massively multiplayer online game dedicated to armored warfare of the mid-20th century and an official game title of WCG. Show attendees can throw themselves into epic online tank battles to fight shoulder to shoulder with other steel cowboys to dominate the world with the sheer power of tank supremacy and refined tactical thinking. The arsenal includes more than 160 armored vehicles from United States, Germany, France, the Soviet Union and Britain carefully detailed with historical accuracy.

“Samsung is really excited to be a part of yet another World Cyber Games,” said Matt Crocker, product marketing manager for mobile computing, Samsung Electronics America, the WCG 2012 Worldwide sponsor. “Samsung has a long history with the gaming community and our Series 7 Gamer was specifically designed with their needs in mind. When putting it into its gaming mode, the Series 7 Gamer takes it to the next level with a turbocharged processor as well as optimized graphics and sound for a truly immersive gaming experience.”

“We’re extremely happy to be at New York Comic Con with WCG,” said Jeremy Monroe, General Manager at Wargaming America. “We look forward to working with them even more in the future as we expand our eSports activities for World of Tanks and beyond.”

In addition to finals competitions which will be played live on stage on the Series 7 Gamer and streamed live for viewers at home on http://www.twitch.tv/wcgusa, the WCG USA (Booth #1839) will hold daily gaming contests, giveaways, and free-to-play gaming areas featuring the latest Samsung products and Wargaming’s World of Tanks for show attendees. A second live stream presented by Samsung will also be made available to those following the competitions at home that will cover exciting announcements, show activities, gamer interviews, and special guests.

Min-Liang Tan said at PAX 2012 the old Razer Blade’s estimated 30-day inventory sold out in … only 30 minutes — and that was when the laptop had a lesser graphic card spec than the Alienware and ASUS competitors.

The Razer Blade is the thinnest laptop in the world with only .88 inches thickness. The Switchblade UI allows players to customize the 10 Dynamic Adaptive Tactile Keys, and the Multi-Touch LCD Track-Panel.

The NEW Razer Blade contains the Intel Core i7 Quad-Core 3rd Generation processor. Intel hasn’t even announced this CPU yet. An NVIDIA GeForce GTX660M which is the standard high-end GPU in the Alienware M17X and ASUS G75VW BBK5.

Razer benchmarked the NEW Razer Blade against these two known Gaming Laptops, and they performed equally in terms of average FPS while playing Diablo III, Battlefield 3 and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

The NEW Razer Blade still has the 17.3″ LED Backlit (1920×1080 Full HD), the custom-made ultra-slim power supply and the Switchblade UI.

It now has a 64GB SSD + 500GB HDD Hybrid-drive. This hybrid drive intelligently learns which files you access more often, and automatically transfers those files to the 64GB SSD as sort of a cache to speed up the launch of those files and programs. Two times the space and three times the speed of traditional hard drives.

It has now three USB 3.0 ports, a dual-band WiFi modem (2.4GHz/5GHz) — better range, less interference and faster speeds.

The Switchblade UI applications are insane. You can watch YouTube videos in the small LCD viewer, can take screenshots and view the thumbnail galleries within the Multi-Touch LCD viewer on the keyboard, and click a facebook button to automatically upload the screenshot without leaving the game (nor going to the desktop).

The NEW Razer Blade is basically the same size and weight as the old model, has better CPU, GPU and RAM — but instead of having a bigger price, it is now only $2499 — down from $2799. That’s three hundred bucks cheaper.

There is a second NEW Razer Blade model at only $2,299. Both Razer Blade models can be pre-ordered here and ships in 30 days (October 1).

Owners of the Old Razer Blade will have the benefit of paying $500 less for the NEW Razer Blade. Pretty cool for upgrading, or to keep the new one and gifting the old one to a friend or family, or those who plan to sell the old one.

Watch Min-Liang unveiling the NEW Razer Blade at PAX 2012:

The new Razer Blade: The Beauty is Now the Beast.

Imagine the performance of a traditional high performance gaming luggable but in an ultra-portable form factor.

Despite rivaling the performance of most powerful gaming laptops out there, the new Razer Blade is half their thickness at 0.88″ thin, and half their weight at only 6.6lbs. Plus, the Switchblade UI lets you customize to your play style in ways you never could before with all new applications for games like Skyrim, BF3, TF2, and more. Or you can watch YouTube on it while waiting to respawn. Your choice.

Some of Blizzplanet’s twenty “Art of Blizzard Cocktail Party” ticket winners sent a couple of photos to share with our community.

Here are some of the comments and feedback from attendees:

“I had a blast at the party with being able to see the work created by Blizzard’s artists up close and personal. It was great also talking to the artists of Blizzard — especially Sam Didier who had some fun stories from working at Blizzard; and starting out as an artist. I do wish though that everyone wore name tags so we knew who was from Blizzard, who was a contest winner, and so forth. The food was a little bit too fancy for me; but was still very good! Overall I had a great time and the swag bags were awesome; and thank you for choosing me as one of the winners!” — Eric Schultz

Joshua had the awesome opportunity to meet Blizzard SVP of Creative Design Chris Metzen and take home a photo for posterity.

All the attendees took home a swag bag full of cool Blizzard stuff:

Dezzen and a friend at the Art of Blizzard Cocktail Party: “I really enjoyed myself. It was a night I will always think back on fondly. ”

Were you one of the SDCC 2012 Blizzard Panel and/or Art of Blizzard Cocktail Party attendees? Got photos or video? Send it our way to post in the front page.

Brian Jaye sent us photos of the Blizzard panel, the Art of Blizzard exhibition and the cocktail party.

Some photos are starting to show up with Blizzard developers signing at the Insight Editions booth. Chris Metzen and Samwise Didier were signing The Art of Blizzard posters and books. Like it at the Insight Editions facebook.

Crave Online interviewed Sam Raimi at San Diego Comic Con. Raimi revealed he’s no longer the director of the World of Warcraft film. After he committed to direct “Oz, the Great and Powerful”, Blizzard decided to move forward with other plans for the film. The Warcraft film is still in development until further notice.

Brand ambassador Christina Sims interviews Christie Golden, author of World of Warcraft: Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects, about her latest book and writing in general!